Observations about CDC Messaging on the Polio-Like Illness from a FOIA Response

30 November 2018

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is an important law established to insure citizens may seek access to government materials. According to FOIA.GOV, its basic function is “to ensure informed citizens, vital to the functioning of a democratic society.” Since returning to the private sector in 2003, I have utilized the FOIA process numerous times with mixed results. When reviewing the FOIA logs at the CDC recently I came across a request made by Judicial Watch in 2014 related to Enterovirus. I requested a copy, knowing that the CDC would have fulfilled their request in line with the stipulated time requirements of the FOIA law because Judicial Watch has a legal team at their disposal to hold federal agencies accountable to the law itself.

The information requested and delivered covered a span of months in 2014 in which there was significant interest in whether children who entered the United States and became known as ‘Unaccompanied Alien Children’ (UAC) had brought with them new viruses which might be linked to the development of the polio-like syndrome being referred to as Acute Flaccid Myelitis (AFM).

News reports indicate that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is stumped and does not know what is causing this. (1) Earlier this month the CDC announced they had formed a task force to investigate the issue. (2) So far in 2018, according to this report there are 106 confirmed cases of AFM in 29 states with all but five in children aged 18 years and under. That number grew in a week’s time to 116 confirmed cases in 31 states with a total of 286 possible cases. (3)

Investigative journalist Sharyl Attkisson has long reported on this issue on her television show Full Measure (http://fullmeasure.news/) . She initially reported on the issue in 2014 when the condition first was reported in the United States. At the time we were dealing with an Ebola crisis as well as upsurge of illegal immigrants coming across the US Southern border. Thousands of children and teens were apprehended by Border Patrol. All were designated as “Unaccompanied Alien Children (UAC)”. Federal data show that children designated as UAC have been released to sponsors in every state. (4)

What I learned about the CDC’s handling of Enterovirus specimen in UACs:

CDC has a Division on Viral Diseases (DVD) within the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD); Within the DVD, CDC has a Polio and Picornovirus Laboratory Branch (PPLB).

On July 14, 2014, CDC personnel notified personnel in the NCIRD that specimens from 35 UACs who were sick with Acute Respiratory Illness (ARI) were sent to the CDC for TAC testing. The next day one of the NCIRD team mention that the respiratory bacteria group has their own TAC card and wondered if they were running tests or not. The response to that inquiry was that they didn’t have the money. Nothing seems to have happened in July or August with these specimens. There was an apparent nudge to get the results in part due to media and public interest in the issue and a member of Congress making inquiries about Enterovirus.

On September 21, 2014 a microbiologist within the PPLB of the NCIRD acknowledged receipt of 23 specimens. There is no discussion included about the missing 12 specimens included in the FOIA. Which of course raises the question of how a third of the specimens go missing and no one seems to notice or care.

The test results show a date of September 18, 2014. The outcome of the 23 NP swabs (acquired in California, Texas and Oklahoma) tested by the CDC Enterovirus Reference Diagnostic Laboratory showed the presence of Enterovirus C105 in 13; Enterovirus – C117 in 2; and one case each of Human Rhinovirus (HRV) 9, HRV 38, and HRV 37.

CDC was in the final stages in 2014 of developing a Quick Response test for Enterovirus (EV) D68. Did this cause them to zero in on EV 68 at the expense of keeping all possible causes of AFM on the table in 2014?

Internal emails confirm an expert considered there to “clearly be an EV C-105 outbreak/cluster” and suggested they look at the locations and clinical/epidemiological data.

There was also an internal discussion about what might occur if a child had an entero and a rhino virus simultaneously. All of these issues are topics the public should be fully informed about and have not been.

What I learned About what the CDC Told the Media and Public in 2014:

One of the lessons I have learned over the many years is that one should pay very close attention to whether or not the question asked of the CDC is actually answered. What I observed when reviewing this FOIA information is that the question the media and public initially asked was not actually answered.

The question initially asked was if the the Unaccompanied Alien Children (UACs) has been responsible for importing enteroviruses into the US. The concern being that these tens of thousands of immigrants had brought with them a new virus that was at the root of the polio-like AFM. Remember, there was a great lack of transparency of where these children were being housed before being sent to their sponsors. The news was filled with stories of mystery buses taking kids to unknown facilities and even plane loads of kids being moved to various locations in the country. During 2014, according to media treports, about 3,000 children were housed on military bases in California, Texas and Oklahoma. While I do not have confirmation of this, it is likely this is where the specimens referenced above were obtained.

One CDC manager blamed Sharyl Attkisson in an email for circulating a ‘conspiracy theory’ about a link between the UACs and AFM. A highly ranked CDC employee expressed relief that the 23 specimens did not show EV-D68. One of the documents produced with examples of questions being asked by the media noted that the concern being expressed was on ‘conservative’ learning new outlets websites.

There were media questions from Brietbart, Fox News, Media Matters, and Accuracy in Media. There was also an inquiry from a doctor who at the time worked for Congresswoman (now Senator-elect) Marsha Blackburn. This doctor now works for Senator Grassley. Cong. Blackburn went so far as to visit the CDC in the fall of 2014 and had a lot of questions. I see no evidence to suggest she was informed about the EV-C105 discovery in the UACs.

Among the internal discussion was a discussion about the Accuracy in Media reporter’s request for information and a CDC staffer telling another CDC staffer via email that he would ‘just have to make a FOIA request and that by the time he got his response, the numbers would be different.’ There was no inclusion of Media inquiry from any of the networks (ABC-CBS-NBC) or print newspapers such as the New York Times.

Each of the reporters and the doctor-legislative staffer was told “no EV-D68 in the UACs”. They were not told there was Enterovirus found in the specimens and that in fact there was a cluster/outbreak of EV-C105.

Sadly, from the information provided in the FOIA, it does not look like these individuals thought to clarify and ask about other viruses or that the CDC staff took the initiative to clarify to the media or Cong. Blackburn and her staff what was found in the 23 specimens. Four years of silence – intentional (malicious) act or a lack of initiative (mediocrity) by those involved? I have no evidence to determine either.

Polio and the C-Series of Enteroviruses

I did a specific search for Enterovirus C105 on the CDC’s website and found an article that specifically connects polio to the C-Series of Enteroviruses. “Acute Flaccid Paralysis Associated with Novel Enterovirus C105” The article authored by a team out of the University of Virginia reported on a case of a young girl who developed Acute Flaccid Paralysis and was confirmed to have EV C105. (5)

It has been four years since the analysis of these 23 samples. Four years since this young girl’s became ill, and three years since her physicians published the above-mentioned paper identifying EV C105; however, the CDC has made no updates to their web pages and does not appear to have focused their efforts on looking at this specific Enterovirus.

Concluding Thoughts – More Questions than Answers

Like most of you, I am increasingly concerned about this paralytic disease that is being called ‘polio-like’, Acute Flaccid Paralysis or Acute Flaccid Myelitis.

I am curious as to what testing has been done in the last four years both in the children who developed this condition and among the Unaccompanied Alien Children related to infectious diseases including EV C105. I believe this information needs to be published online and available to everyone in as close to real time as possible. I learned through this FOIA response that the CDC has a ‘master database’ on their specimen outcomes. Will the Task Force have access? Where is the public access? Is anyone at the CDC looking beyond EV D68? Are their quick response tests being developed for other enteroviruses? Are the doctors treating the AFM cases testing for other enteroviruses like C105? Has the CDC even made this suggestion?

I cannot help but worry that the migrants who are sitting in Tijuana, 60 percent of whom have respiratory illness already may be carrying EV C105 or something else that will develop into a life-threatening illness for these individuals and those in the surrounding areas. Because of the deteriorating conditions at this migrant camp site, some have now been bused to another location in Mexico about an hour away. They will hopefully have better conditions, but whatever viruses they may carry, are going with them. I hope the public health sector of the Mexican government along with the organizers of the caravan are working on improving the sanitation and reducing the spread of infections.

There is No Cure – Yet.

The CDC admits they have no cure to offer for this polio-like condition. They advise close attention to frequent hand washing with regular soap. Entero and Rhino viruses can live on clothing and surfaces for many hours – up to 72 hours on hard surfaces like door knobs. So, hygiene remains the number one best prevention.

Be smart – if you are sick, stay home and away from others. Forgo hand shaking for the winter months. Up your intake of Vitamin D and Vitamin C. Get adequate rest. If you have a child who tends to ‘catch everything’ avoid taking him or her to large public spaces like the mall, movie theaters, big box stores especially on high attendance days especially if there are reports of flu and respiratory illnesses in your community. I am shocked at how often I see people cough and sneeze in public and make no attempt to cover nose and mouth.

Given what I learned in this FOIA’d information from 2014, I see a new FOIA request in my near future.

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